had the means in the lean years of the Great Depression and World War II to stop the onslaught of rapid decay. On March 17, 1952, a mysterious fire during the night destroyed what remained of the house. Dozens of books have been written about Belle Grove's beauty and charm, and hundreds of photographs of it have been published. During the late 1930s a comprehensive set of photos and architectural drawings were produced for the Historic American Buildings Survey. This material, an inventory of the house's contents made on the death of Isayah E. Henry in 1908, and a drawing of the missing wing, are available on the website of the Library of Congress. Photographer Clarence John Laughlin described Belle Grove in his work, Ghosts Along the Mississippi: When completed, its tremendous mass rose on huge brick foundation arches over twelve feet above the surrounding earth, its walls and mantels were plastered and carved by the most expert European craftsmen money could secure, its great flight of brick steps was covered with imported marble, its door knobs and keyhole guards were of silver, its pillars bore Corinthian capitals six feet high but of the utmost refinement. Its theatrical magnificence would have delighted the Bibiena family - seventeenth century designers of the most elaborate and grandiose stage sets for kings. Yet it was not heavy, or pompous. It managed somehow, to combine vastness with delicacy; titanic proportions with grace and warmth.... See also Belle Grove (Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana), on Bayou Black References External links Friends of Belle Grove Plantation of Louisiana Website Belle Grove Plantation Records, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Antebellum architecture Historic American Buildings Survey in Louisiana Houses completed in 1857 Sugar plantations in Louisiana Demolished buildings and structures in Louisiana Houses in Iberville Parish, Louisiana Greek Revival houses in Louisiana Italianate architecture in Louisiana Plantation houses in Louisiana Burned houses in the United States 1857 establishments in Louisiana Gilded Age mansions